Fairy Tail FanFiction Writing for Dummies
by Girlygeek43
Summary: Hi, this guide will answer any questions you may have about fan fiction writing along with any tricks or tips you may want or seek when writing your fan fictions. Got any, suggestions or questions? Leave it in the comment section.
1. 1: Cannon Characters

Hello everyone, this is going to be a guide for the FT fandom if you have any questions about fan fiction writing. Here's GG43's "Fairy Tail Fan fiction writing for Dummies" In this we're going to cover various problems in each fan fiction that's quite common. So, let's get the elephant in the room out of the way first.

What's the elephant in the room? The series' character's in the fics.

**STEP 1: TRY TO KEEP THE CHARACTERS IN CHARACTER**

This is a very common problem in most of the fandom's fan fictions. Most of the characters are not really in character and their personalities change with every fan fiction. For example, Lucy getting kicked off of team Natsu because the team thinks she's weak, or Lisanna is causing this problem. This is complete bull crap. There was no point in the manga or anime where Team Natsu would want Lucy off the team. In fact if you've even read the manga, Lucy is a very valuable member to team Natsu. They'd never want her removed. Also, go watch the anime and read the manga, Lucy is not weak.

Something like this should especially be taken into consideration for female characters. Too many times, females have their personalities changed and it's usually for the worst. One in particular is Lisanna, she's not trying to steal away Natsu from Lucy. In fact, Lucy is not even in a relationship with anyone yet. Also, if it did happen, Lisanna is not going to be a conniving little bitch to break them up and kick Lucy off the team. She would be happy that Natsu is happy. Just watch the anime or read the manga and tell me when Lisanna was mean to Lucy for being with Natsu.

If you want to kick Lucy off the team, it has to be done for a good reason. Meaning that Lucy has to do something so irredeemable on purpose. That can create an interesting story in my opinion since it can set up a nice drama. So remember, team members are not kicked off for trivial reasons. A team member has to do something so extreme in causing harm to their team mates that they have no choice. Remember, back in the series Laxus was expelled form Fairy Tail because he turned all of the members of Fairy Tail against one another and almost caused his own grandfather to die.

I don't care about your parings, these characters are not yours so don't abuse their personalities or their character for your own benefit. Hiro Mashima put hours of blood sweat and tears to create Fairy Tail, so don't disrespect him. So Lucy is not a weakling, Lisanna is not a harping bitch, Cana is not a slut, Erza is not endlessly looking for love 24/7, Gray is not gay for Natsu, and Loke is not a man whore. I am aware that Loke did surround himself with women in his human years but he only used it to distract himself.

**STEP 2: CHECK YOUR SHIP BEFORE SAILING IT**

As known, there are a ton of ships out there in the FT fandom. However, take note there may be some holes in certain ships when you look at the official anime or manga. For example, Lucy and Sting. Take note that there is very little interaction between those two in both the anime and the manga. Especially compared to Natsu or Loke. You see, shipping character's like Lucy with either Natsu or Loke makes sense because they had plenty of interactions. I prefer Loke because he's slightly more affectionate toward's her compared to Natsu, and he owes his life to Lucy, literally. Also, Natsu and Lisanna have known each other since they were children and hatched Happy together, this gives more basis for a possible relationship. So please consider interactions between characters before shipping them with each other.

Also, please keep in mind that the ships also need pacing. Don't dive into a relationship at the start of the story unless it's an AU premise. Try to develop relationships over time slowly. Remember, real relationships start with couples usually hating each other, or just being good friends and then getting to know each other. So while Gray and Juvia makes sense, don't make Gray fall for her right away. Try to make them have a conversation when she's not in crazy for Gray mode. Remember, Gray gets freaked out when Juvia is very forward.

In addition, if a ship is cannon live with it unless you're doing and AU fic. But again, try to keep characters in character while doing so. For example, Levy and Gajeel tend to act like they can't stand each other even though Levy actually likes him. Same goes for Jellal and Erza, they almost kissed in one episode if any of you remember that scene. However, Bisca and Alzack are officially cannon and they even have their own marriage and daughter to prove it.

Also, when trying to do a relationship between characters that hate each other try to make it a love hate relationship but I will cover that later on.

**STEP 3: FOLLOW THE RULES OF THEIR POWERS CONSISTENTLY**

In any fictional universe there are sets of rules established. The best part, you can create any kind of rules you want, but they need to be followed. Again this involves sticking with cannon. So when you're writing a fic, remember Natsu and Gajeel get motion sickness since they're high level dragon slayers, except when being carried by exceeds. Additionally, keep in mind that Lucy's spirits suck the magic right out of her, so be careful. However, take note that Loke can go through the gate with his own magic from time to time so that won't drain her. Plus, Celestial spirits can't stay in the human world forever, Loke could only stay in the human world for three years tops. Whatever you do, don't break those rules because then the whole entire story would start to contradict itself and leave plot holes. Take note from what happened in the Twilight Saga, Meyer stated in the first book that her undead xmen (They are not vampires) could not have babies, since all bodily fluids were replaced by venom. However, for some unknown reason, they had a baby. See how contradictory that is? So stay consistent. If you're doing an AU where there are no powers, such as the school OVA try to keep in mind that if there were no powers, keep it that way.

Any questions or concerns? Please leave it in the review section. More chapters and guides will come soon.


	2. 2: Original Characters 101

Glad you're still here now here's a section some of you should read when creating Original Characters. Take note that there are some pretty common problems in the fandom be it on Deviant art, or here.

**STEP 1: ON DA? DRAW YOUR OCS DON'T RECOLOR!**

This is a very common problem with a variety of Fairy Tail OCs. It seems that on Deviant art people think it's okay to recolor screenshots and call them your OC. You are not only committing plagiarism, you are being lazy. I hate to be mean but the truth hurts, recoloring and using bases for OCs is lazy. You see, recoloring just involves taking a screenshot, going into a paint program and coloring over everything. It's plagiarism because Hiro Mashima created those characters and you are coloring over them saying that they are yours. Imagine if someone else took one of your pieces of art, recolored it and called it their own. That's what you're doing. Traced bases are also in this category because it shows that you don't just recolor, it shows people that you're afraid to draw and you don't even want to try. You see, everyone's art style is unique so don't be afraid to draw characters in your art style at first, remember sucking at something is the first step at being sort a good at something. Sure, on tumblr there are role players with face claims but face claims are called face claims for a reason, they are not officially said Role Player's character, they are just using a face for their muses and actually credit the original source. All and all, learn how to draw. However, aside form just drawing you should also learn how to write a character as well.

**STEP 2: MAKE THEM ORIGINAL!**

In the Fairy Tail Universe there is a variety of magic that can be seen, and it would be refreshing to see some newer mage types. So please, keep the dragon slayer OCs light. The Fairy Tail guild itself has 4 dragon slayers, the series in general has seven dragon slayers so keep that in mind that not all powerful mages are going to be dragon slayers. Plus, dragon slayer magic is considered a lost magic, so don't make it common. You can do magic created around certain objects such as paper, or glass. You can do weather magic, sound magic, elemental magic, etc. That's the beauty of the Fairy Tail universe magic has variety. Also, try creating new guilds or put them into other guilds. While Fairy Tail is welcoming to just about anybody, there are other guilds as well be it dark guilds, legal guilds, etc. However, make sure that your mage is limited to only their magic alone. It's very rare that a mage can use two kinds of magic in the Fairy Tail universe.

Plus, don't copy and paste the personalities of other characters, that's also a sign of laziness. If we get clones of cannon or original characters it gets boring way too quickly. Give them varieties in their likes and dislikes. The manga has guild cards for a reason. Some characters can be cheery, others can be grumpy, and some can be more mature than others. Remember, human beings are not all the same, neither are anime characters. Also, try to give them some development in your fics, if they start out at one place but slowly evolve in character over time that's good. That means characters are going through development. For help, think about your favorite characters from different TV shows and why you love them.

**STEP 3: GIVE THEM WEAKNESSES AND FOLLOW THE RULES OF ANY EXISTING MAGIC**

You see, all mages have weaknesses and if a character is not weak to something, it's boring. If you have a character that can't lose they're too powerful and once again, it's boring. Even Fairy Tail's top mages can't win every battle they're in all the time, understand? Remember, motion sickness for high level dragon slayers is mandatory, with the exception of Wendy since she knows healing magic. In addition, you can't give them unlimited magic it's against the rules of the Fairy Tail universe and once again it makes them too powerful. Don't give them lost magic as their magic all the time, keep it sparse, it's called lost magic for a reason. Also, here are some signs that your OCs are way too powerful. Can they beat Gildharts Clive with just one hit? Too powerful. Are they seen as an enemy by Fairy Law casters yet are left unharmed? Too powerful. So make them flawed and make them beatable. Remember, the pokemon Sableye had no weaknesses along with Spiritomb, but nintendo flawed them in their stats and gave them weaknesses in gen 6.

**STEP 4: CAREFUL WITH BLACK MAGIC**

Also, unless they're part of some cult, criminal gang, or dark guild, don't give them magic that's banned. FYI no legal guild would be able to operate if they were housing members using banned magic. Why else do you think Bora is a criminal? He was using banned magic. So unless your OC is a criminal, don't give them banned magic.

**STEP 5: WATCH THE CLOTHING**

Remember now, make them outfits for different environments but keep one thing in mind. Nothing too flowy or loose. These kinds of clothes can get caugth in anything. So unless there is a certain amount of skill, NO CAPES! Take note that both Rouge Cheney and Gildharts did have capes, but their magic levels are quite high. Remember, capes have no use for combat.

**STEP 6: NO NEED FOR A SOBBY BACK STORY ALL THE TIME**

I know that Fairy Tail is deep and all but not all of the back stories have to be sob stories. Don't make them like that last one of their clans, or often trying to seek revenge. The back stories can be simple, but don't make them overshadow the main characters.

**STEP 7: DON'T SHIP WITH CANNONS IF THEY ARE ALREADY IN A RELATIONSHIP OF HAVE ANOTHER CANNON CRUSHING ON THEM**

Shipping with cannons can be very risky. And I do mean risky. You see some characters may be in a relationship already or have a crush on another character. In a nutshell, Juvia is not going head over heels for your male OC when she's in love with Gray. And none of the guys in the guild are going to fall for your OC instantly, just like cannon characters, build the relationship. If you're going to do instant love, make that original character a villain using banned magic or charms. Or make them some sort of supernatural creature in away but once again follow the rules of the set universe.

Please provide me with any questions.


	3. 3: Human biology 101

You're still reading, good. Now it's time to cover something that should be covered more in depth, rules. Now i have established that rules of the universe should be followed in an earlier chapter, but there are also other rules that should deal with something else. Pure scientific human functions. I don't care if there is magic in this universe, a majority of these characters are humans.

**STEP 1: BE CAREFUL WITH DISEASES**

While you can make diseases try to follow the basic medical terms. For example, don't use the itis suffix for everything to make it a disease. (NERD RAGE TIME) The itis suffix only refers to inflammation. This is when something in the body had to be swollen and reddened from an infection such as Bronchitis, that is an inflammation of the lung's bronchial tubes' lining. If nothing is inflamed, don't use the itis suffix to try and make it sound like a disease. So if a character has a stomach virus of some sort,a head injury, etc. there's no inflammation so don't call it whatever itis. I apologize but this is just a pet peeve.

Also, try to remember the difference between these two terms, diagnosis and prognosis. Here's an example of how to it is used incorrectly. The thunder god tribe takes Laxus to the hospital in a fic, and one of them asks, "So what's the prognosis?" to figure out what he's got. This is incorrect, a prognosis refers to where someone is going to end up. For example, Lucy has a broken wrist and the prognosis is that she has a 50% chance of recovering within a week. A diagnosis is straight up what someone has got. For example, Natsu has been diagnosed with a brutal fever. Don't confuse the two or use them randomly just to sound more medical.

**STEP 2: BASIC BIOLOGY OF THE HUMAN BODY**

In order to prevent making mistakes like Twilight author Stephanie Meyer, who contradicts herself constantly. Try to remember basic human biology for your stories. Always remember, no matter what magic they use, humans are warm blooded and when people touch them, they should not emit cold temperatures from their skin. In fact their skin should only be the same temperature as their environments. Even if they are ice based mages they are still humans and still retain body temperatures. If their body temperatures were to lower beneath 98.6 it can cause hypothermia. So please keep the character warm blooded, unless they were a hybrid of a reptile of some sort, reptiles are cold blooded animals. A cold blooded animal's body temperature changes with their environment, so if it is cold their body temperature is cold and vice verse. Additionally, if you're trying to make a character that's a hybrid of some sort, don't give them any more or less than 23 chromosome pairs to explain their hybrid appearance if you're trying to get scientific. (NERD RAGE TIME AGAIN) If a human has an extra chromosome in certain areas, it can cause down syndrome or other developmental disabilities and abnormalities which will prevent them from functioning normally. I have nothing against down syndrome people, but they are not likely to be a lead character in an anime like Fairy tail because they wouldn't be able to battle like the characters we all know and love most of the time. FYI most people with down syndrome can suffer form seizures in their adult life and it's estimated that this affects 50% of adults with the condition. There have also been studies conducted that display down people have very poor hand eye coordination compared to people without the condition. Also, some conditions involving a lack of chromosomes are often affiliated with gender, some people may have this condition and if you don't write it with sensitivity it can get offensive.

Also, when designing a female character, don't try to oversize her breasts too much. Yes the FT universe is known for busty women, but what I mean is don't give them a size that will make it impossible to even do any sort of combat or even stand. So don't be afraid to make B cupped characters. Yes, they can be busty, just keep them at a believable size for the Fairy tail universe. How do you know when they're too big? Can they make Lucy blush with envy? Do they hurt their back when they just stand? Do they have trouble balancing when they stand up? If yes to any of those questions,then they're too big.

Also, take note that when you want to make a character pregnant, don't over romanticize it. Meaning don't make it look easy, if they're a mage they need to perform simple jobs. They can't battle in difficult jobs while they're pregnant. Also, try to include some morning sickness, cravings, etc. Try to research pregnancy before making a character pregnant. Which brings me up to possibly the most important part.

**STEP 3: DO NOT WRITE MPREG!**

If you're trying to write a yaoi story fine, but do not write Mpreg, period. I repeat DON'T. You see men don't have the biological parts to carry babies at all. You can defend this with the movie Junior all you want or real life Thomas Betie. First of all, Junior was a terrible movie and Thomas Betie was a woman but came out later in life as a transgender so he still had his womb and female parts. A different species that is not human can have male pregnancies in a way, if that's the established biology of the species. However, 99% of mages in the Fairy Tail universe are humans, meaning that the males can't carry babies, they can only help make them. Also, according to Snappedchopstick on DA in her open letter to yaoi fangirls she stated,"You're just writing it because you think that your adorable couple needs a baby to cement their relationship, and babies just have to come from the innards of one of them, or it _just doesn't count."_ And she's right, tell me what's the problem with adoption in the first place? It's actually very common for gay couples in real life to adopt a kid. In fact that would be refreshing, seeing a couple adopt a child in a story. Also, if you're writing a yaoi or something in the Fairy tail Universe, why not make a female character a surrogate mother? That's practiced for gay couples IRL as well. But please, for the love of God don't kill off the surrogate mother just because they get in the way of your OTP or something, but I will get to that issue later. Also, the only male creature that can even give birth in real life is a seahorse, and mages are not seahorses ALL RIGHT!

**STEP 4: USE DISABILITIES IN A SMART MANNER!**

It's true there are autistic and ADHD people out there. However, if they're portrayed the wrong way it can get very very risky. You see here's something you don't know about me but I have Asperger's syndrome. This is a mild form of autism, it gives most people diagnosed with this condition high intellectual skills but they have trouble communicating with other people. So if you portray people with a learning disability, be careful because most people don't want to be stereotyped. Also, learning disabilities are not really prominent in Japan compared to most western nations. In fact developmental disabilities in Japan are very rare so be careful.

However, when it comes to more crippled characters that can be done a bit safer. You see, most crippled people are not born crippled. In fact form what I know, there has to be an accident to make it happen. However, do not romanticize it. Being crippled is not something that can be romanticized, it's very hard for most people. You need to make sure that the character goes through disadvantages then finds ways to over come them slowly. This is why Toph from Avatar became so awesome, not because she's blind, because she figured out a way around it and other senses were strengthened. Her blindness is not romanticized in any form.

Please provide me with any questions.


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